Chapter 173: Half-elf (3)
Chapter 173: Half-elf (3)
Ninety-five percent of the land in Northguard Keep belonged to Su Lun.
The remaining land was mostly exchanged by Su Lun’s soldiers, with a small portion taken by refugees.
The current farming model in the territory was collective production.
This farming method was easy to manage and did not require too many people.
It was also efficient and suitable for large fields or big farms.
The downside was that it was not as careful as the farming from his past life, so the yield was a bit lower.
Northguard Keep had few people and lots of land, so this farming method fit well.
Of course, this was good for now, but once Zhenbei City developed more, Su Lun would change this model.
He planned to sell the land to more Freeman.
Su Lun did not appoint Nobles in his territory because he did not have a fixed noble title himself.
He only had a noble status, and it was limited to his lifetime, not something he could pass down.
For now, this did not matter.
As long as Su Lun could develop Zhenbei City, any country would be willing to grant him a title.
He could even give himself a title.
In the end, a title depended on one’s own strength.
When setting up the territory’s rules, Su Lun also created a noble system.
But earning a noble title was not easy.
Currently, the only way was through military achievements.
As the military Noble system grew, the social classes in the territory would become more defined.
Su Lun imagined three classes in Zhenbei City: Noble, Citizen, and Freeman.
Slaves were not included.
The Noble class was made up of army leaders and officials.
These people had to be skilled and help Su Lun manage the territory.
Citizens were powerful professionals, Soldiers, and those who contributed to the territory.
They owned land, had higher social status, and could hold official positions.
Freeman were ordinary people who owned land and lived in the territory but had little say.
Su Lun would have to be crazy to enforce total equality in his territory.
Even among the gods, there was no true equality.
Holy spirits, Priests, and blessed ones had higher status than regular believers.
The Pope had higher status than ordinary Priests.
Devoted believers also had higher status than casual or occasional believers.
This world was not like his past life where gods and churches were just beliefs.
Here, gods were real, and they had their own likes and dislikes.
Gods also collected faith.
A devoted believer provided ten times more faith than a casual believer, and over a hundred times more than an occasional believer.
Faith was the source of a god’s power.
More faith meant more power, so why would a god treat all believers equally? That was wishful thinking.
Similarly, if he forced equality in his territory, ordinary people would not thank him, but his followers would be very unhappy.
These followers fought and bled for the territory, so they deserved special treatment.
But what about the ordinary people? They did little but got the same benefits as Soldiers, leaders, and even Heroes.
That would be unfair to those Soldiers, leaders, and Heroes.
Worse, it could cause many problems.
If people could gain status without effort, who would be willing to fight for him?
The brave Warriors who once followed him would leave.
People would not want to join the army.
Why risk your life in battle if you can have a good status without doing anything?
So Su Lun did not plan to push for equality, human rights, or freedom here.
Doing so would only hurt himself in the end.
His class system was simple.
Once the territory developed enough, he would create policies for first-class and second-class Citizens.
This would motivate Freeman to work hard for higher status.
For now, the only way to gain status was through military achievements.
Zhenbei City was in the Northern Wilderness, where battles happened every day.
So military achievements were important, and Su Lun wanted to raise the social status of Soldiers.
For example, if someone from a family joined the army and passed the checks, the whole family would become Citizens.
They would get some land and pay lower taxes than Freeman.
After joining Zhenbei City, the Half-elves began to fit in.
They were curious about this city built so quickly.
They marveled at the “long dragon” outside the city, over four kilometers long and thirty-five meters high.
They were amazed that humans built such a grand structure.
Later, they learned it was Zhenbei City’s water supply channel.
After arriving, the Half-elves found that water could flow right into the houses.
The houses were good too—simple and plain, but spacious, bright, clean, and comfortable.
They could always decorate them later to look better.
Besides these, what impressed them most was how clean the city was.
Elves liked cleanliness, and Half-elves shared this habit.
They were surprised to see such a tidy city.
George, a young Half-elf, came to Zhenbei City with his sister Peiqi.
His sister was a Half-Elf Archer, and her husband was a Ranger.
But two months ago, he died in a small fight with Orcs, leaving behind a child under one year old.
After arriving in Zhenbei City, George and Peiqi felt much more relaxed.
At least here, they did not have to worry about Orc attacks.
“Sister, look at that!”
The most eye-catching building in Zhenbei City was the Harvest Altar.
At twenty-seven meters tall, it was the highest structure in the city.
The altar was built with evenly cut stones and had many beautiful marble statues.
A strange energy surrounded it, making it look sacred and grand.
They did not know what the tall building was for, but they felt respect for it.
The roads in Zhenbei City were very flat.
Interestingly, everyone walked only on the right side.
The whole city was still under construction, with many work sites around.
Besides humans, there were many Goblins, Gnolls, and even Orc slaves at the sites.
Many people were curious about the Half-elves, but no one dared to approach them.
In the group leading them, George saw the rumored lustful and evil Drow Elves.
But they seemed to be Half-elves too.
Mother Grace had already told them that these Drow Elves worshipped the Dark Maiden, not the evil spider goddess.
They came to the surface to escape the spider goddess’s chase.
These Half-Drow Elves showed no expression and ignored others.
They stayed silent the whole way.
George noticed that the Drow Elves looked at them with complex emotions.
Though cold and expressionless, the Drow Elves were very responsible.
They explained all the rules of Zhenbei City.
They pointed out restricted areas and places they could not enter.
The Inner City was off-limits without permission, as were many craft workshops.
If someone had a skill and wanted to be a craftsman, they had to report to officials at the Administrative Hall.
The Military Camp was also forbidden, as was the grand Harvest Altar.
If anyone approached without permission, the Garrison Forces would arrest and question them.
The Drow Elves led them to a residential area.
Because Mother Grace made a deal with the Lord, all Half-elves were given houses.
The houses were not big, only forty square meters, and not very pretty, but they were clean and comfortable.
They were better than the wooden huts they lived in before.
Besides housing, each person got a small piece of land.
To get more land, they had to work hard.
Also, to get better housing or more land in Zhenbei City, they needed something called Points to exchange.
They could earn Points by working for the Lord or joining the army.
After the Half-elves were assigned houses, a clerk came with helpers to register their names and addresses.
They called it household registration.
After that, the clerk gave them a metal tag.
He told them they could use it to get some food each day.
The food was not much, and the main dish was only Potato.
They could choose steamed Potato, baked Potato, mashed Potato, or a mix.
Besides Potato, each person got a bowl of clear fish soup.
It was not enough to fill their stomachs, but it kept them from starving.
To eat better, they needed to use Points.
George had no problem with these rules.
Living in the Northern Wasteland, with snow covering the ground for at least four months each year, they knew how precious food was.
Especially in winter, getting something for nothing was not allowed here.
To live well, they had to work hard.
In fact, George was grateful to the Lord.
The Lord gave them a safe place to live and grow.
The city seemed orderly.
The Inner City was hidden behind walls, but the Outer City looked like a big construction site.
There was building everywhere, so there were many job choices in Zhenbei City.
They did not have to worry about going hungry because they could not find work.